In the last few years, the AI market has boomed, which owes its legacy to the gaming industry. To support increasingly complex and realistic graphics, chip designers created the graphics processing unit (GPU). These chips were capable of carrying out a huge number of calculations in parallel, making it possible to power consoles like Xbox and Playstation.
In the early 2020s, when AI researchers were looking for viable ways to replicate the power of the human brain, they started using these gaming chips. Nvidia, the most prominent GPU chip manufacturer, had a market cap of $150bn at the beginning of 2020. Today, driven by demand for AI applications, Nvidia’s market cap hovers around $3 trillion and it is one of the world’s most valuable companies.
The integration of AI into the maritime market has also witnessed impressive growth. Thetius data suggests that in the last 12 months alone, the maritime AI technology market has nearly tripled. 2024 research estimates that the AI market is worth a staggering US $4.13 billion with a 5-year Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 23%. Compared with Thetius’ research from 2023, which estimated it to be worth US $1.47 billion with a 5-year CAGR of 22%, it’s clear to see that the value of the maritime AI technology market is rapidly rising.
This data was produced by Thetius IQ, a database that tracks the movement of more than 4,000 maritime organisations. Through 604 market updates logged by Thetius IQ within the last 12 months, 420 organisations have been involved in developing, selling, buying, or investing in AI technologies within the maritime industry.
In 2023, Thetius IQ tracked only 276 organisations, suggesting a growth in AI-based solutions from maritime stakeholders. It’s also worth pointing to a 2020 paper on AI that shows a sharp increase in studies relating to big data and AI in the maritime industry. The bibliometric review found that since 2014, there has been a rapid rise in maritime AI research and an exponential growth of publications around these topics, pointing to a growing interest in these domains.
Market overview: who’s doing what? Buyers and suppliers
Thetius IQ has captured 125 companies involved in supplying AI technologies within the last 12 months and 36 shipping companies that have announced the purchase or plans to deploy AI-enabled technologies.
Thetius IQ data suggests that 63% of organisations recorded in our database that are supplying AI technologies are SMEs, while 18% are corporates and nearly 17% are startups.
Compared to Thetius’ data from 2022-2023, the percentage of startups in the AI tech sector has increased by 5%, indicating a slight growth in the number of new companies entering this field. The percentage of SMEs has grown by 2% since our 2022-2023 research.
The growth in SMEs and startups supplying AI technologies since the 2022-2023 research is unsurprising. This rise aligns with the industry’s increasing demand for energy-efficient and safe operations. Regulatory pressure and the desire from shipping lines to reduce their emissions and maintain competitive advantage present a huge opportunity for startups and SME technology providers to bring new and innovative solutions to the market.
For further insight into the market overview discussed in this article, take a look at our thought leadership report, produced in collaboration with Lloyd’s Register titled, “Beyond the Horizon, Opportunities and Obstacles in the Maritime AI Boom” This report offers an in-depth analysis of the current state of operational AI in the shipping industry, shedding light on the latest trends, groundbreaking developments, and successful implementations. You can download a copy of the report here.
